US open: Stocks trade higher following bank earnings

(Sharecast News) - Wall Street stocks were in the green early on Thursday as investors digested more key inflation data and a number of earnings from major US banks. As of 1525 BST, the Dow Jones Industrial Average was up 0.41% at 39,917.29, while the S&P 500 advanced 0.55% to 5,615.43 and the Nasdaq Composite came out the gate 0.74% firmer at 18,418.75.

The Dow opened 163.54 points higher on Friday, building on modest gains recorded in the previous session.

Thursday's primary focus will be second-quarter earnings from several US banks, with JP Morgan posting big increases on both its top and bottom lines, even as its boss continued to call attention to the potential risks on the horizon, while Wells Fargo revealed that Q2 net interest income was almost down double-digits year-on-year, and Citigroup posted higher quarterly revenues and profit, alongside an increased dividend.

On the macro front, the US producer price index advanced 0.2% in June, according to the Bureau of Labor Statistics, slightly more than the 0.1% increase expected on the Street. As a result of last month's increase, the PPI was now up 2.6% for the year as a whole. May's number was also revised higher, with the new report indicating that PPI was unchanged on the month, compared to the 0.2% decline it had previously pointed to.

Last month's hotter-than-expected PPI reading comes shortly after June's consumer price index came in cooler than expected on Thursday, with headline inflation declining on a month-on-month basis to 3%.

Elsewhere, a preliminary reading of last month's University of Michigan consumer sentiment index showed a fourth-straight monthly decline, dropping from 68.2 in June to 66 in July. The preliminary print marked the lowest reading since November and was well below forecasts of 68.5.

Reporting by Iain Gilbert at Sharecast.com

Dow Jones - Risers

Amgen Inc. (AMGN) $326.78 1.88% Cisco Systems Inc. (CSCO) $47.36 1.69% Caterpillar Inc. (CAT) $336.30 1.56% Home Depot Inc. (HD) $358.46 1.32% 3M Co. (MMM) $104.43 1.16% International Business Machines Corporation (CDI) (IBM) $179.89 0.89% Salesforce.Com Inc. (CRM) $253.18 0.82% Walt Disney Co. (DIS) $97.25 0.67% Travelers Company Inc. (TRV) $210.09 0.55% Coca-Cola Co. (KO) $63.42 0.52%

Dow Jones - Fallers

Microsoft Corp. (MSFT) $453.55 -2.18% JP Morgan Chase & Co. (JPM) $203.13 -2.08% Boeing Co. (BA) $180.82 -1.68% McDonald's Corp. (MCD) $252.46 -0.92% Intel Corp. (INTC) $34.35 -0.69% Walmart Inc. (WMT) $69.42 -0.55% Walgreens Boots Alliance, Inc. (WBA) $11.36 -0.48% American Express Co. (AXP) $237.70 -0.44% Johnson & Johnson (JNJ) $149.38 -0.21% Verizon Communications Inc. (VZ) $41.23 -0.17%

S&P 500 - Risers

Nektar Therapeutics (NKTR) $1.44 7.87% Sba Communications Corp. (SBAC) $212.60 4.54% J.B. Hunt Transport Services Inc. (JBHT) $167.35 3.94% Bank Of New York Mellon Corp. (BK) $63.78 3.76% Dollar Tree Inc (DLTR) $107.11 3.74% Cognizant Technology Solutions Corp. (CTSH) $71.18 3.64% Fastenal Co. (FAST) $66.61 3.35% Illumina Inc. (ILMN) $118.60 3.33% Charter Communications Inc. (CHTR) $305.00 3.06% Lennar Corp. Class A (LEN) $160.21 2.81%

S&P 500 - Fallers

Wells Fargo & Co. (WFC) $55.88 -7.12% Meta Platforms Inc. (META) $501.21 -5.95% Costco Wholesale Corp. (COST) $840.08 -4.37% Align Technology Inc. (ALGN) $244.50 -4.25% Nvidia Corp. (NVDA) $129.73 -3.27% Lam Research Corp. (LRCX) $1,074.14 -3.13% Applied Materials Inc. (AMAT) $245.32 -3.00% Citigroup Inc. (C) $63.82 -2.87% NetApp Inc. (NTAP) $131.25 -2.58% KLA-Tencor Corp. (KLAC) $862.09 -2.26%

Nasdaq 100 - Risers

Qurate Retail Inc. (QRTEA) $0.77 9.43% J.B. Hunt Transport Services Inc. (JBHT) $167.35 3.94% Dollar Tree Inc (DLTR) $107.11 3.74% Cognizant Technology Solutions Corp. (CTSH) $71.18 3.64% Fastenal Co. (FAST) $66.61 3.35% Illumina Inc. (ILMN) $118.60 3.33% Charter Communications Inc. (CHTR) $305.00 3.06% Hasbro Inc (HAS) $58.97 2.43% Liberty Global plc Series A (LBTYA) $18.75 2.43% Gilead Sciences Inc. (GILD) $70.28 2.37%

Nasdaq 100 - Fallers

Tesla Inc (TSLA) $246.45 -6.57% Meta Platforms Inc. (META) $501.21 -5.95% Costco Wholesale Corp. (COST) $840.08 -4.37% Align Technology Inc. (ALGN) $244.50 -4.25% Nvidia Corp. (NVDA) $129.73 -3.27% Lam Research Corp. (LRCX) $1,074.14 -3.13% Applied Materials Inc. (AMAT) $245.32 -3.00% KLA-Tencor Corp. (KLAC) $862.09 -2.26% Amazon.Com Inc. (AMZN) $195.03 -2.23% Alphabet Inc. Class A (GOOGL) $185.88 -2.22%